Backup Crew

Flight

Stephen
Bowen was originally assigned to
STS-124 but was moved to
STS-126 to allow this mission to rotate
an
ISS crew member. Stephen
Bowen was scheduled to perform the
EVAs
on the flight along with Michael
Fossum. Ronald
Garan took his place for the
EVAs.

STS-124 (ISS-1J JEM PMJEM
RMS) delivered the Pressurized Module (JEM PM) of the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM),
called
Kibo, to the International Space Station (ISS).
Kibo was berthed to the
Harmony
module and the pressurized section of the
JEM
Experiment Logistics Module, brought up by the
STS-123 crew, was moved from
Harmony
to the
JEM PM. The Japanese Remote Manipulator System, a
robotic arm, was also delivered by
STS-124 and attached to
Kibo. The entire
Kibo laboratory is being brought up over three
missions.Gregory
Chamitoff replaced Garrett
Reisman who arrived on the station in March 2008 and was
completing three months as a station
Flight Engineer. Garrett
Reisman returned to Earth aboard Discovery. Gregory
Chamitoff returned to Earth on shuttle mission
STS-126, while Sergei
Volkov and Oleg
Kononenko returned in
Soyuz TMA-12 in October
2008.

Kibo is 14 feet (4.3 meters) longer than Columbus
and 9 feet (2.7 meters) longer than the U.S.
Destiny
laboratory. It joins the first component of the Japanese segment of the
station, the Experiment Logistics Module-Pressurized Section (JEM
ELM PS), that was launched on the last shuttle flight,
STS-123, in March 2008. The logistics
module will be robotically detached from the top port of
Harmony
during the mission and reattached to the top port of
Kibo to serve as a storage depot.The
JEM
ELM PS was launched with eight racks of science gear and control equipment
that will be transferred to the JPM for installation. In all,
Kibo can house up to 23 racks of equipment and
experiments that will involve research in space medicine, biology, Earth
observations, materials production, biotechnology and communications.The
new pressurized module also is equipped with its own robotic manipulator system
and an airlock. The Japanese robotic device will be comprised of two separate
six-jointed arms, the main arm that measures 32.5 feet (9.9 meters) and can
handle up to seven tons of hardware, and a small fine arm, a 6.2 foot (1.9
meter) extension that will be used for delicate payload operations. The small
fine arm will be launched later on a new Japanese resupply ship for the station
called the H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV).The airlock ultimately will be used once the
final components for the Japanese segment of the station are delivered on
shuttle mission STS-127. That flight
will install the Exposed Facility (JEM
EF) and the Exposed Logistics Module - Exposed Section (JEM
ELM-ES). Some experiments will be mounted on a sliding platform that will
move out of the depressurized airlock and handed off to the small fine arm for
installation onto the exposed section. The airlock is not designed for
spacewalks.

One of the trenches at launch pad 39-A that channels flames
away from the shuttle during lift-off was significantly damaged. The subsequent
mishap investigation found that the damage was the result of carbonation of
epoxy and corrosion of steel anchors which held the refractory bricks in place.
These had been exacerbated by the fact that hydrochloric acid is an exhaust
by-product of the solid rocket boosters.

During the first full day in
space, Kenneth
Ham
and Karen
Nyberg completed a limited inspection of the shuttles
thermal protection system using the end effector camera of the shuttles
robotic arm. The crew also installed the centerline camera and extended the
orbiters docking system ring to prepare Discovery' for arrival at the
space station.

Rendezvous began with a precisely timed launch of the
shuttle on its trajectory for its chase of the International Space Station. A
series of engine firings over the next two days brought Discovery to a point
about 50,000 feet (15,240 meters) behind the station.Once there, Discovery
started its final approach. About 2.5 hours before docking, the shuttle's jets
were fired during what is called the terminal initiation burn. Discovery
covered the final miles to the station during the next orbit.As Discovery
moved closer to the station, the shuttle's rendezvous radar system and
trajectory control sensor gave the crew range and closing-rate data. Several
small correction burns placed Discovery about 1,000 feet (304.8 meters) below
the station.Commander Mark
Kelly,
with help from Pilot Kenneth
Ham
and other crew members, manually flew the shuttle for the remainder of the
approach and docking.Mark
Kelly
stopped Discovery about 600 feet (182.9 meters) below the station. Once he
determined there is proper lighting, he maneuvered Discovery through a
nine-minute back flip called the Rendezvous Pitch Maneuver and known as R-bar Pitch Maneuver (RPM). That allowed the
station crew to take as many as 300 digital pictures of the shuttle's heat
shield.Station crew members used digital cameras with 400 mm and 800 mm
lenses to photograph Discovery's upper and bottom surfaces through windows of
the
Zvezda
Service Module. The 400 mm lens provided up to 3-inch (7.6 centimeters)
resolution and the 800 mm lens up to 1-inch (2.5 centimeters) resolution. The
photography was one of several techniques used to inspect the shuttle's thermal
protection system for possible damage. Areas of special interest included the
thermal protection tiles, the reinforced carbon-carbon of the nose and leading
edges of the wings, landing gear doors and the elevon cove. The photos were
downlinked through the station's Ku-band communications system for analysis by
systems engineers and mission managers. When Discovery completed its back flip,
it was back where it started, with its payload bay facing the station.Mark
Kelly
then flew Discovery through a quarter circle to a position about 400 feet
(121.9 meters) directly in front of the station. From that point he began the
final approach to docking to the
Pressurized
Mating Adapter 2 at the forward end of the
Harmony
node. The shuttle crew members operate laptop computers processing the
navigational data, the laser range systems and Discovery's docking
mechanism.Using a video camera mounted in the center of the ODS, Mark
Kelly
lined up the docking ports of the two spacecraft. He paused 30 feet (9.14
meters) from the station to ensure proper alignment of the docking
mechanisms.He maintained the shuttle's speed relative to the station at
about one-tenth of a foot per second (3 centimeters per second), while both
Discovery and the station were moving at about 17,500 mph (28,163 km/h). He
kept the docking mechanisms aligned to a tolerance of three inches (7.6
centimeters).When Discovery made contact with the station on June 02, 2008,
preliminary latches automatically attached the two spacecraft. The shuttle's
steering jets were deactivated to reduce the forces acting at the docking
interface. Shock absorber springs in the docking mechanism dampened any
relative motion between the shuttle and station.Once motion between the
shuttle and the station had stopped, the docking ring was retracted to close a
final set of latches between the two vehicles.

Following a
standard safety briefing by station
Commander Sergei
Volkov, the crews will get to work, activating the Station to
Shuttle Power Transfer System (SSPTS) to provide additional electricity for the
longer operation of shuttle systems.

Discovery carried with it
replacement parts in a mid-deck locker for a malfunctioning toilet on the
International Space Station. The crew had been using other facilities for waste
until the new replacement parts were installed on the
Zvezda
module of the
ISS.

The first
EVA was performed by Michael
Fossum and Ronald
Garan on June 03, 2008 (6h 48m) to transfer of the Orbiter
Boom Sensor System back to the shuttle from its temporary location of the
station's truss, or backbone. The crew then prepared the
JEM PM for its removal from the shuttle's payload bay.
Later that day, the
JEM PM was installed installed on the port side of
Harmony.The
first objective was to transfer the
OBSS left after the previous shuttle mission from the
station's truss to space shuttle Discovery. Most of the tasks fall to Ronald
Garan, who was releasing the stanchions holding the boom to
the truss and removing a bag that had protecting the boom's sensor package.
Just before the station's robotic arm took control of the boom and handed it
off to the shuttle's robotic arm, Michael
Fossum detached the keep-alive umbilical that has been
providing the boom's systems with power while stowed. The boom was used later
in the mission to inspect the shuttle's heat shield.Next, the spacewalkers
prepared the
Kibo laboratory for installation. While Ronald
Garan was working on the boom, Michael
Fossum will inspected the
Harmony
Node's left side active common berthing mechanism to ensure that it's ready to
attach to
Kibo. He also opened a window cover to provide the
crew inside with a good view of the installation.After the boom work was
done, Ronald
Garan and Michael
Fossum worked together in the shuttle's cargo bay to remove
contamination covers from the surface where the module will connect to
Harmony.
Michael
Fossum also disconnected the heater cables connecting the
module to the shuttle and removed three bolts that lock the shutters of
Kibo's forward window in place for launch.The
spacewalkers' final tasks of the spacewalk took them to the station's starboard
solar alpha rotary joint. The 10-foot-wide (30.5 meters) rotary joint, which
allows the station's starboard solar arrays to rotate and track the sun, began
experiencing increased vibration and power usage in the fall of 2007.
Inspections turned up metal shavings inside the joint. One of the joint's 12
trundle bearing assemblies, which allow the joint's outboard ring to rotate
around its inboard ring, was removed.Ronald
Garan installed a replacement for that trundle bearing
assembly. Meanwhile, Michael
Fossum inspected a potentially damaged area on the joint to
determine whether there was debris sitting on the surface of the metal, or a
divot in the metal. A similar inspection was performed during
STS-123, but Michael
Fossum used sharper tools to give him more tactile
feedback.Michael
Fossum also tried out techniques for cleaning the surface of
the joint's race ring. First, he tried removing a section of the debris, using
a putty knife as a scraper. Next, he applied grease to the surface and then
tried the scraper again. And finally, Michael
Fossum tried using a wipe and grease.

On flight day 5
the hatch to the
Kibo lab was opened at 21:05
UTC. The crew also repaired the malfunctioning
ISS toilet.

The second
EVA by Michael
Fossum and Ronald
Garan occurred on June 05, 2008 (7h 11m) to install covers
and external television equipment on the
JEM PM and remove covers on the
JEM
RMS, which was later installed on flight day 8. The spacewalkers also
prepared for the flight day 7 relocation of the Japanese logistics
module.The crew began the second spacewalk by installing on the
Kibo laboratory two cameras that will be used to judge
clearances for the module's robotic arm. Ronald
Garan installed the forward camera, while Michael
Fossum worked on the aft. They then worked together to remove
the seven thermal covers on each of the robotic arms' six joints and its end
effecter. Each cover required the spacewalkers to remove two fasteners and
disconnect two grounding wires.Next, they prepared the laboratory's top
active common berthing mechanism for the attachment of a smaller section of the
module, the JLP, which was delivered during STS-123. To do so, they removed the berthing mechanism's
thermal cover, the bolts securing two micrometeoroid orbital debris shields and
a launch lock, and inspected its surface. They also installed thermal covers on
the metal post that connected the laboratory to the shuttle's cargo
bay.After that, Ronald
Garan and Michael
Fossum split up to prepare for a nitrogen tank assembly swap
that they performed on the mission's third spacewalk. The nitrogen tank
assembly uses high-pressure nitrogen gas to control the flow of ammonia out of
the ammonia tank assembly. Ammonia is used to control the temperature on the
station's exterior.Michael
Fossum moved to the left side of the station's truss, where a
spare nitrogen tank assembly was located on External Stowage Platform 3. He
installed an articulating portable foot restraint onto the platform for use
during the next spacewalk, and loosened the four bolts that anchored the
nitrogen tank assembly to the platform. And to prevent overheating during the
swap, he installed thermal covers over the assembly's quick disconnect
lines.Ronald
Garan also loosened the bolts and installed thermal covers on
the old nitrogen tank assembly, which was on the starboard truss. In addition,
he disconnected three electrical connections and the nitrogen lines that
attached the assembly to its corresponding ammonia tank assembly.For the
final tasks of the spacewalk, Ronald
Garan joined Michael
Fossum on the left truss to remove an external television
camera that had a failing power supply. They brought the camera inside with
them, where the power supply was replaced, and then reinstalled it during the
third spacewalk.

The crew moved the
Kibo Logistics Module from
Harmony
to the Pressurized Module on flight day 7.On flight day 8 Akihiko
Hoshide and Karen
Nyberg moved two of the six joints on the Japanese
Kibo lab's robotic arm for the first time, maneuvering
them very slightly with a series of commands.

The third and final
EVA by Michael
Fossum and Ronald
Garan was conducted on June 08, 2008 (6h 33m) to replace a
failed nitrogen tank assembly on the station's truss with a spare. That was
temporarily stored on one of the station external stowage platforms. They also
retrieved a failed camera system on the truss.Replacing the depleted
nitrogen tank assembly required Ronald
Garan to spend much of his third spacewalk on the station's
robotic arm. He started the spacewalk by installing a width extender to
increase the robotic arm's reach, climb into a foot restraint attached to the
width extender and remove four bolts holding the old nitrogen tank assembly in
place on the starboard truss. After installing a handle on the assembly, he
removed it from the truss and carried it to the external stowage platform, via
the robotic arm.Meanwhile, Michael
Fossum removed the spare nitrogen tank assembly from the
platform to make room for the old one, and stored it on the other side of the
platform. When Ronald
Garan arrived with the old assembly, Michael
Fossum guided it into place and began securing it to the
platform with four bolts. Once one of the four bolts was secured, Ronald
Garan removed his handle from the old assembly, attached it
to the new one and rode the robotic arm back to the starboard truss with the
nitrogen tank assembly in tow. He removed his handle, installed the bolts to
secure it to the truss and connected the necessary electrical link. Then he got
off the robotic arm and moved to the back of the truss to connect the
assembly's nitrogen lines to the ammonia tank assembly.Meanwhile, Michael
Fossum finished securing the old nitrogen assembly and moved
to the
Kibo module to finish outfitting it. He removed launch
locks and thermal covers from the two cameras on the module's robotic arm, as
well as the launch locks on the module's aft window. The window had been
blocked by the robotic arm during the first spacewalk, when he removed the
launch locks on the module's forward window. He then deployed two
micrometeoroid debris shields on either side of the connection between the
larger laboratory module and the recently relocated experiments logistics
module.Once that was done, Michael
Fossum returned to the airlock to retrieved the external
television camera with its new power supply. He met Ronald
Garan back on the port truss, where they reinstalled the
camera.

On June 09, 2008
Kibo's robot arm was extended to its full 33 feet (10
meters), with all six joints tested. The astronauts also opened the hatch to
the
Kibo's storage unit.

At undocking time, the
hooks and latches were opened, and springs pushed the shuttle away from the
station. Discovery's steering jets were shut off to avoid any inadvertent
firings during the initial separation.Once Discovery was about two feet (61
centimeters) from the station and the docking devices were clear of one
another, Kenneth
Ham
turned the steering jets back on and manually controlled Discovery within a
tight corridor as the shuttle separated from the station.Discovery moved to
a distance of about 450 feet (137.2 meters), where Kenneth
Ham
began to fly around the station in its new configuration.Once Discovery
completed 1.5 revolutions of the complex, Kenneth
Ham
fired Discovery's jets to leave the area. The shuttle moved about 46 miles (74
km) from the station and remained there while ground teams analyzed data from
the late inspection of the shuttle's heat shield. The distance was close enough
to allow the shuttle to return to the station in the unlikely event that the
heat shield is damaged, preventing the shuttle's safe re-entry.

Just
prior to the landing the decision was made to use runway 15 rather than 33.
This decision was made based on the sun glare that would be present on the
Commander's window as he lined up Discovery with the runway.